Experience raw, untamed Africa when you visit Botswana, an unpolished gem of a country - the ideal gap year or year out destination for those with a passion for conserving wildlife and a desire to venture off the well trodden path.

Botswana hosts a diverse array of ecosystems providing habitats for a wealth of African wildlife, including elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, zebra, wildebeest, rhino, giraffe, hyena and the highly endangered spotted wild dogs. Join this project working in a Game Reserve and enjoy the daily exposure to raw untamed nature. Each evening as the dust settles at the end of another clear and bright African day, you can see giraffes silhouetted against the warm glow of the setting sun.

Absorb the overwhelming scale and drama of Africa as you relax in the evening under an obsidian midnight sky witnessing the amazing constellations and listening to the calls of the roosting birds and settling wildlife. The primitive beauty of Botswana provides the backdrop for this exciting and worthwhile project which will give you the chance to work alongside local staff as you carry out your various daily duties. If you want to help in the preservation and protection of some of the most impressive mammals in existence whilst discovering this dramatic and alluring African country, then this is the project for you!

WHAT DOES THE PROJECT DO?

Botswana is incredibly special as it provides some of Africa's best game viewing, allowing access to sightings which are of a quality that is unique to the country. This project aims to give a real insight into the behaviour of some of the world's most beautiful animals and offers volunteers an opportunity to live and work in a true wilderness environment. It involves wildlife tracking, conservation work and exposure to a truly wild ecosystem, awakening the explorer in you. The project is working to accumulate knowledge of the African bush and wildlife and the research you gather will help to develop the databases for the reserve.

The project focuses on elephant behaviour, such as herd make-up, movements, parent/offspring behaviour, individual characteristics, feeding traits and so forth, as well as predator activity, including species identification, territory utilisation, feeding and social behaviour.

WHAT WILL I BE DOING?

You will spend your first two weeks working on the conservation programme working with large wildlife. Your daily itinerary will vary according to the focus of the programme at the time of your visit but may include activities such as tracking the animals, in particular elephants and Botswana’s main predators, collecting data on general game, birds, vegetation and tree population and growth and mapping trends. More specific research may also be carried out by volunteers, depending on requests from academics, such as mapping a specific tree species or collecting information on the feeding habits of a particular animal species.

The final two weeks of the project will see you join a wildlife tracking course where you will get the opportunity to learn all sorts of bush skills. You will learn to identify animals and birds and their behaviour, tree and plant identification and the interrelation between all of these. Your local expert guide will also school you in the art of tracking, important in order effectively to locate and observe animals.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I ARRIVE?

You can fly into Johannesburg airport and once there make your own way to Polokwane in the North of South Africa. Please aim to arrive on a Tuesday, as you will be picked up very early on the Wednesday morning. From Polokwane you will be transported to your project site in Botswana. Once there the local staff will introduce you to your project and the area. Your in-country coordinator will be more than happy to help you settle in and acclimatise and you'll feel at home in no time in this friendly, vibrant country.

WHERE WILL I BE STAYING?

Your first two weeks on the conservation programme will be spent staying at the volunteer camp in the wilderness reserve, where you will really get a taste of living in the wild, staying in traditional African wooden huts with thatched roofs (see photo gallery) and having a braai (BBQ) in the evening. The camp is unfenced and situated in the heart of the wilderness. Lions and elephants are seasonally regular visitors to the camp, along with many other mammal species. Volunteers live communally and will be expected to share their accommodation with other volunteers (same sex sharing).

During the wildlife tracking phase conditions are a little more basic, comprising satellite tented camps with bucket showers and long drop toilets. You will also spend one night sleeping on the ground under the stars whilst you and your fellow volunteers take it in turns to keep watch!

WHAT WILL I BE EATING?

All food is provided, with volunteers taking turns to cook the evening meals for the group. Breakfasts and lunches are on a self-serve basis, with fresh bread baked daily by camp staff. Food in Botswana is similar to that of other Southern African countries, but you will get the chance to try some of the uniquely Botswanan dishes, such as slow cooked beef or chicken, simmered in a three legged pot! Other common foods include sorghum, rice, pap, salads, cereals, eggs and beans - simple and nutritious dishes are key and vegetarians are welcome.

ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

In your spare time embrace this extremely well preserved and underdeveloped country by trying some of the sporting and adventure activities that are available, including horse safaris, wilderness walking trails, mountain biking, game drives and many more.

Botswana has a reputation for being a leader within Africa in high cost, low impact tourism, having successfully formulated and pioneered strategies for the preservation of species that are threatened elsewhere, such as leopards, which has minimised the degradation of its precious reserves and made it the perfect place to see a wealth of wildlife.

WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED

To apply for this placement, click on "Apply Now" below. Fill in the short application form and one of our advisers will then call you back to answer any questions and make sure this is the perfect placement for you. Applying doesn't cost a penny and you won't pay anything until you're completely happy and you're ready to reserve your place.